Brothers Osborne unleash a trio of new tracks this week, while Tanya Tucker celebrates her upcoming Country Music Hall of Fame induction with a first glimpse into her upcoming album. Meanwhile, Aaron Crawford nods to his trusty six-string companion, and Ray Fulcher and Tenille Arts team for an ode of gratitude.
Brothers Osborne, “Nobody’s Nobody,” “Might as Well Be Me” and “Rollercoaster (Forever and a Day)”
Hitmakers and critical darlings Brothers Osborne team with a new producer, Mike Elizondo, as they return with a trio of gut-punching tracks, marking their first music since the deluxe version of their Skeletons album. “Nobody’s Nobody” is a heartening track that nods to the fact that everyone makes an impact on somebody. “Some people never ever make a name/ But change the game in someone’s story,” TJ sings, backed by John’s bluesy guitar work.
“Might as Well Be Me” is a careening barn burner, with a rollicking groove every bit as impressive as the duo’s previous hit “It Ain’t My Fault,” while maintaining that “Somebody’s gotta shake things up… might as well be me.” Notably, they change gears on the piano and string-led ballad “Rollercoaster,” delving into a romance between two emotional polar opposites and the balance they each bring to the relationship. These well-grounded tracks are a promising glimpse into their upcoming album.
John King, “Make More Time”
King has already proven his sturdiness as a songwriter (through penning songs including Randy Houser’s “We Went”) and an artist (via his 2021 album Always Gonna Be You). But in his latest, he ponders the gravitas of everyday moments — a childhood birthday, or a phone call with an octogenarian loved one — in light of mortality. King’s supple vocal can ride the smooth tenor notes before breaking into a baritone just raspy enough to capture the longing and resignation in the line, “I can make a little money on the side/ But damn, I can’t make more time.”
Tanya Tucker, “Kindness”
Newly minted Country Music Hall of Fame inductee-elect Tucker wasted no time capitalizing on the announcement of her upcoming inclusion into country music’s most coveted membership, announcing her new album, Sweet Western Sound, to arrive June 2. As with many tracks on her previous effort, the Grammy-winning While I’m Livin’, the first taste of her upcoming project, “Kindness,” finds Tucker reflecting on her sinuous life journey, along with the lessons learned through the zeniths and hollows.
“I found glory in the ruins of the best-laid plans,” she ruminates triumphantly on this track, written by twin musician-writers Tim and Phil Hanseroth (known for their work with Brandi Carlile, who co-produced Sweet Western Sound with Shooter Jennings). Beyond the reflection, she pleads for kindness and understanding, and with her signature vocal, Tucker delivers.
Aaron Crawford, “Strings of This Guitar”
Northwest native Crawford telegraphs a nod to his constant companion of “wood and wire,” a well-worn six-string guitar that “took me on a winding road that dreamers understand,” on this tale of ambition-fueled perseverance. Along the way, his notes his trusty guitar has not only served as a bolster for his voice, but a salve for onstage loneliness and anxiety. The woozy, emotional ties depicted within should resonate with any number of musicians and artist-writers.
Chase Matthew, “Come Get Your Memory”
With his latest, Matthew aims squarely for the country/rock and bro-country-tinted amalgam dominating country streaming charts at the moment. In this track Matthew wrote with Casey Brown and Jordan Minton, he faces a home filled with his ex’s memories and begs to her to take them, along with everything else she took when the relationship fizzled. The radio-ready “Come Get Your Memory” is the title track to Matthew’s upcoming debut album for Warner Music Nashville, a 25-song sprawl out June 9.
Nicholas Jamerson, “Billy Graham Parkway”
Sinewy guitar fills this stately-sounding track, which ponders the greed and emptiness in the years and months leading up to a three-car pileup on Billy Graham Parkway. “Was the money you made worth the price that you paid/ Selling Jesus on cable TV?” Jamerson sings pointedly on this track, which was written by Jamerson’s late friend, Allun Cormier. The song takes its name from a stretch of road in Charlotte, North Carolina named for the evangelist Billy Graham. Jamerson’s upcoming album, Peace Mountain, releases May 19.
Ray Fulcher with Tenille Arts, “After the Rain”
The multi-talented Fulcher is known in songwriting circles for contributing to a range of hit songs for artists including Luke Combs (“When It Rains It Pours,” “Does to Me”) and as an artist on his own project Spray-Painted Line. Here, he teams with “Somebody Like That” hitmaker Tenille Arts for this earnest ode of love and gratitude for someone who “picked up the pieces when my heart was breaking/ since you showed up nothin’s been the same.” Their vocal interplay is terrific, with Arts’ penetrating soprano balancing Fulcher’s warm baritone. Fulcher wrote the song with AJ Pruis and Matt Jenkins, together crafting a song that serves as a balm of gratitude in a divisive age.
Remy Garrison, “As I Go”
While numerous country songs amount to little more than a list of nostalgic country “bona fides,” Alabama native and Nashville resident Garrison distills a list of her own — namely, a rundown of lessons she’s learned about love. “Don’t let a fool kiss ya/ Don’t let a kiss fool ya,” and “Don’t shop for white on an empty heart,” are a few of of the hard-fought gems Garrison advises, on this track written by Adam Wood, Lena Stone and Taylor Watson. Garrison is known for her previous single releases such as “Anymore” and “Young and Restless,” but this release further showcases her ear for sturdy songcraft and interpretive talents.
